Hunter's Prey

Off Track

After what was officially the most painful shower I have ever had, I cleaned up what I could of my injuries. It was nice to have a warm shower- but it was nearly impossible to enjoy it with a broken arm and leg. Still, I’d been tortured to endure high amounts of pain like broken bones. Luckily, whoever patched me up knew what they were doing. It was incredibly basic. It’s clear they were making do with whatever was on hand- but someone had managed to create an effective cast for my arm and leg using a slim piece of wood, tape, and first aid gauze.

My clothes were also left in the bathroom, and Baines was right. The clothes I had arrived in were beyond saving- most of the stuffing had come out of my once puffy jacket, my pants and thermals were held together by threads, and everything was covered in blood. I can’t remember the last time I’d bled that much.

I made my way back into the bedroom and to the closet, peering in I saw the leftover clothes of Baines’ sister. Truthfully, I’d been unaware he had a sister- it was irrelevant to the assignment. I pulled out what seemed like the simplest and easiest things for me to put on- a soft blue sweater, and black shorts. Both of which hurt like a b***h to put on- I really couldn’t lift my right arm past my belly button, and every stretch of a muscle caused my leg to feel like it was directly under a blow torch. Still, what else could I do?

Catching a brief look at myself in a floor-length mirror I could see just how shitty I looked. My pale skin practically matched the snow outside, my hair looked ratty, and my face showed how close to death I came. My eyes were sunken in and looking deader than usual.

I took a deep breath, shutting my eyes. No use in self-pity. I turned away before opening my eyes and hobbling back towards the bathroom. I found a thankfully clean hairbrush and went after the nest that probably had a few twigs in it. It took me 10 minutes, but surprisingly no leaves, twigs, or branches. Setting the hairbrush down I took a deep, deep breath.

I can’t believe I’d managed to get myself into a situation like this. Yeah, I never claimed to be perfect, but I was still better than this. To think my guard had been let down at all to let this happen. If I’d been quicker, less hesitant.

Stop. My own voice commanded me. Do what you’ve been trained to do. Improvise. This is not the end. I looked into the mirror and deep into my own green eyes. The person I saw staring back at me was truly a stranger. There was no way to properly put it. It wasn’t some form of imposter syndrome. I knew the person I saw in the mirror was me. But something was missing. Like that one puzzle piece, that one unflipped switch. I’m here, living and operational, unimpaired, but I was not whole. And I have no idea what that last missing piece was.

I shook my head. I was not in a safe place to be pondering my life. I was still- and literally- in the house of the enemy. I made my way out of the bathroom one more time and into the bedroom. I had to hug the wall, but I managed to get to and open the door, where I was greeted by one of Baines’ personal security team.

He seemed to avoid direct eye contact with me. “Mr Baines had requested I assist you down to the kitchen.” He cleared his throat, “He’s waiting for you.” I couldn’t tell if this was an act of distrust on Baines’ part or another act of kindness. Then again, I was walking around on a broken leg, so perhaps it was more of a courtesy. Still, I nodded and accepted the arm offered to me by Baines’ man.

We made our way down the stairs painfully slow, then down a hall and into a modern kitchen. Like almost all things modern, it followed a very monochromatic pallet, everything being white, black, or shades of grey in between. The marble countertops were impossibly clean and white, while the cabinets were made of black-stained wood. The walls were a light shade of grey with little to no decor outside of what a model home would look like.

Baines himself was sitting at the island counter scrolling through something on a laptop. When he'd sensed us nearing he shut his laptop and turned to greet us- or should I say me. He dismissed his guard as soon as we entered, taking over in assisting me into a chair at the island. I could smell his cologne, and surprisingly, I had to hold myself back from leaning further into him.

Baines didn't try to overstep any boundaries, allowing me to settle myself down into the chair. He stepped back once I'd successfully sat down and moved around the island towards the fridge, “tea? Coffee?” He offered.

“Water, please,” I responded. I glance over at his laptop. I wondered what could be on it. Baines was pretty high up in terms of criminal enterprises. Would there be anything valuable there, or would it be all things that the Organization already knew? I turned my attention back to Baines, I wasn't going to worry about it. I do what was outlined in the assignment, which of course has already gone off the rails. I couldn't make any brash decisions.

I figured it was as good a time as any to play the innocent guest, “so, Mr Baines was it?” I began, he turned and handed me a glass of clear water.

“I am, though you can call me Richard, and you are?” He asked.

I paused. I didn't have a name. One of the many things the Organization had taken from me, “You can call me Artemis.” I poked a little further, “What is it you do, Mr- ah, Richard?”

A small chuckle left his lips at my pathetic attempt at informality. “Well,” he seemed to ponder, then flashed me a smile, “let's just say, I work in the trading of exotic goods.” Well. It's not wrong. If I didn't already know, then ‘exotic goods trader’ wasn't far off from what he did as the leader of Northern Europe's largest crime syndicate. He followed up, “And what is it you do? Do you live on the mountain?”

Well. Seeing how he answered, I figured I'd match. “I don't live on this mountain, no, and let's just say I'm a freelancer. I'd come up on business when I'd been pushed off.”

“I see,” Baines leaned back against the counter. He seemed to take a few seconds to mull over what I'd said, “And do you think your… freelancing may have something to do with your fall?”

I don't know why, but at that moment I nodded. Why? I could’ve lied. Said no, it was some maniac. Part of me felt like there was an acknowledgment to keep our professions vague for the other's good.

Baines nodded, “I see,” he repeated. “Then, know that my assistance will be here if you ask for it. Otherwise, I’ll leave the matter to you.”

We sat in silence for a few moments. “Are you related to the Marquis Baine family?” I figured I'd ask an honest question.

He beamed, “I am, though I inherited no title, they are cousins.”

I tilted my head, it was an odd phrasing, “What do you mean you inherited no title?”

“Ah well,” He poured himself a cup of coffee, “if I’d been born to a mother my family had approved of I’m sure I would have been given the title.” He continued with a laugh after my puzzled look, “My dad had been arranged to marry another vampiress, someone who'd also come from wealth no doubt.”

I finished, “but he eloped?”

“Something like that,” Baines nodded, “he found his bonded partner. My mother was a servant to the woman he was supposed to marry. My grandfather threatened to cut him off from his status if he didn't marry who he was supposed to.”

I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, “your dad gave up his status just to marry a woman?”

Baines looked at me with intrigue, “You don't believe in the bond that ties two people together? The very idea that there was someone made for you?” His expression caught me off guard. It was like… it was like he was pleading with me to say yes.

I'm sorry. I shook my head, “I suppose if one of the countless gods had a personal hand in it, sure. There are far too many people in the world, and the world is far too large to worry about finding-” I paused for a moment. I shook my head and repeated resolutely, “The world is far too large to ever hope or expect to find your ‘missing piece’.”

“I see,” Baines averted his gaze away from me, he looked… sad. He wasn't using Domination, I could tell that much, so why did I want to take it back? “Well,” he composed himself in a split second, though now he seemed a little colder than before, “I have work I must return to. I'll assign Hawthorne to accompany you wherever you wish to see, my office is the only room currently off-limits. Please feel free to explore the rest of my home.”

“Oh?” I was surprised he was just giving me free access to almost everywhere. Or perhaps it was more surface level, I now required help just to walk around anywhere. Hopefully, I can heal sooner rather than later.

Baines grabbed his laptop on the way out, pausing at the door, “I'll call you down when it's dinner time, or have it sent up to your room, whatever you wish.” With that, he left me alone in his kitchen. I looked down at the untouched glass of water he'd given me. I had new emotions that were slowly starting to swirl in the pit of my stomach. Why did I feel bad hurting him? Why was he hurt over the opinion of someone he'd just met?

I sighed, and why is this all turning out much more complicated than it should be? I lifted the glass and took a drink.